It’s part of the legend of London that its ritzier boroughs are crammed with Russian billionaires. Britain’s oligarch-friendly tax laws, we’re told, draw in the men. Our female-friendly divorce laws pulls in the women. And they all love the shopping, night life, private schools for little Masha and Sasha and bodyguard-free safety of the streets. No wonder as many as 300,000 Russians are here.

But what do we know about “our” rich Russians? Not much — they’re still a mystery inside a riddle wrapped in an enigma. We might like the idea of these fabulously over-the-top creatures bringing their winnings from the collapse of Communism to London, consuming like crazy, buying football teams and sending our house prices up. But we don’t understand them, any more…

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